Overview

There are several common reasons why a website may be down. This article describes the various reasons why this occurs along with steps to resolve common issues.

How to determine

The first step to take is to confirm if the site is actually down in all locations, and not just your local computer.

There are a couple ways to do this which are described below.

Is it down for everyone, or just me?

downforeveryoneorjustme.com checkes if the site is online from a number of locations. It will then let you know if the site is down everywhere, or if only your computer is unable to view it.

Proxy sites

Proxy sites allow you to bypass network issues and view the site from a different location. One of the most popular proxy sites is anonymouse.org which lets you test your site. If it loads, it confirms the site is resolving online. If you still cannot view it, try clearing your cache and flushing DNS:

Suspended account due to non payment

To check your account, log in to your panel. If your account is currently suspended due to non payment, a large red "SUSPENDED" notice appears at the top of the screen. To fix, click the Make Payment button to pay which re-enables your account.

You'll receive an automated email once the payment has been made, and then the system automatically re-enables your account. The DNS for your site must then propagate again online which may take several hours. After that, your site will resolve again.

Important:

There is a high risk of data loss when an account is suspended. DreamHost keeps a 2 week backup of website files and 5 days worth of database records. However, THIS IS NOT GUARANTEED. To avoid data loss, make sure to continually backup your data:

If your status is anything other than ok, you must correct it with your domain registrar.

Is my server up?

If your registration is current, and your account has not been suspended, but you can’t reach your domain even with proxy sites, check to make sure that your server is up. You can do this by running a traceroute to your server, and by pinging your domain. Instructions for performing these steps are found here:

Disabled site

In rare cases, DreamHost may disable your site. Log in via SSH or FTP and look at the directory name of your site. If you see the site directory has been renamed to indicate that the site has been disabled, please contact DreamHost support. In such a situation, you will also receive an email indicating what steps to take.

DNS propagation

If you have made any type of DNS change recently, your DNS may need more time to propagate online. This includes the following changes: